UW offers new dairy management program

The Department of Dairy Science in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences is expanding its curriculum options for 1999 with the addition of a Dairy Enterprise Management specialization program.

The new specialization, which is partly modeled after the UW–Madison’s Certificate in Business program for non-business majors, is incorporated into the business option in the dairy science major. The Dairy Enterprise Management program requires six School of Business courses. Business classes included in the program are finance, accounting, marketing, personnel management and small business management.

Students completing the new program may also qualify for the Certificate in Business from the School of Business, says George Shook, chair of the Dairy Science Curriculum Committee. Qualification would depend on the student’s GPA and acceptance into the certificate program.

Through the new specialization, undergraduate dairy science students can acquire comprehensive management skills needed to compete in an increasingly business-oriented dairy industry, says Ted Halbach, curriculum committee member and former dairyman.

“As herds expand, business skills will become increasingly important,” Halbach says. “The Dairy Enterprise Management curriculum is ideal preparation for a herd manager, as it combines what I think are some essential business classes with conventional dairy science course work.” Halbach notes that these skills are also necessary for consultants who must increasingly justify their services within a farm’s business plan. “In retrospect, I wish that I could have had the training that this program offers,” he says.

The dairy science department, already among the top departments in the nation, benefits not only from the addition of the new program, but also from a capable and diverse faculty. “Training the professional dairy herd manager of tomorrow takes people who are experts in many fields,” says Lou Armentano, chair of the department. “We are lucky to have access to professors who are experts in the business and economic aspects as well as those who specialize in the biology of crops and cows.”

As the dairy industry evolves, the new program helps maintain the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences as a national leader in agricultural education.

“Education in dairy science must keep up with changes in the dairy industry, in biological science and in economics. UW–Madison has world-class departments in dairy science, economics, engineering and related fields,” explains Richard Barrows, associate dean of CALS. “This new curriculum will allow students to take the very best from this array of outstanding departments, and our program will be among the very best in the nation,” he adds.